Traveling as an unmarried couple to Muslim countries

Before organizing a trip in detail, it is good practice to be informed about the rules, habits and customs of the place where you are going to go, especially if the culture of those who live there is particularly different from that of the visitor. Knowledge never hurts and puts you in the right mindset to better enjoy the experience abroad.

Think about the country you live in. Think about its most beautiful features. Then, stop, try to be objective and try to think about the dangers of your country, traits of your culture that you would change or annoy you. You will likely be able to have more than a few complaints about the state you live in, unless patriotism blinds you.

If you continue to dig to the bitter end, sooner or later, you will find something to complain about in any context, in the world. The more you dig, the more you find. Before leaving for a trip, however, you also need to motivate yourself to discover, by continuing to look at the beautiful experiences you will love to have, the delicious dishes you will taste, the wonderful places you will visit, the interesting people you will meet. You do not want, therefore, to focus only on the negative aspects and live a journey of fear, ending up attracting misfortunes on you (because the frightened or lost guy is the ideal victim).

Before leaving for Jordan (if you're interested in the itinerary of our trip, read this article), as always, I read a bit of a blog about the habits and rules of the place. At one point, I came across an article that dealt with the theme of the travel of unmarried couples, right in Jordan. The article, analyzing the rules of the Islamic religion, warned against traveling with a companion with whom one had not been in front of an altar. The motivation lay in the fact that lying (therefore, even sharing a hotel room) with someone other than one's spouse could be viewed as adultery and punished accordingly.

Frightened by the readings (after the first, others followed), I contacted every single accommodation facility that I would later book. I asked each of them for permission to sleep with what would have been "just a friend", in full respect of the local culture. Today, I can say that if I really got anything from such an approach, it was pointing a magnifying glass on me and Loretta. Fortunately, contrary to what we read, no one in Jordan asked us if we were married or not. The owners of the facilities we stayed in seemed much more concerned with making us have a great experience than with everything else. This happened in every place we visited, in the more open and modern Amman as well as with the Bedouins of the Wadi Rum desert.

In this article, I don't want to trivialize important issues such as the difference between cultures. Before each trip, do your research anyway and draw your own conclusions. What I am trying to convey to you is only the fruit of the experience I had in Jordan and, subsequently, in Morocco (where I have not worried at all about the issue). Consider that, in other countries (or in other contexts in Jordan itself), the application of laws and literal respect of religious principles may be different. Remember that, as a tourist, often the locals will be more flexible towards you than they would be with their compatriots (because, for them, you are also an important resource!) but don't take too much advantage of it, don't think that you're in your land and always bring the utmost respect for the local culture, not only as an ethically correct attitude but also for the protection of your tranquility and your travel experience. Loretta and I avoided holding hands, effusions in public (even trivial, for us), we covered our bodies respecting the sensitivity of the place. All of this can be seen as a sacrifice (and it is) but the knowledge that that sacrifice will be temporary helps to deal with it. It is not a question of making a vow of chastity for life but of adapting for that week or two, it being understood that, in the privacy of a room, with a little self-control, there is no risk of offending anyone!

I hope I inspired you and removed some doubts. If the article left you something, likes, shares and comments are greatly appreciated. If you want to read other similar contents, subscribe to the newsletter!